Paddock-to-plate traceability protocol being developed from trials

As part of three data-enabled agriculture traceability trials, a new traceability protocol is being developed.

The first trial conducted by AgTrace Australia used land management in the red meat sector as a case study to demonstrate what’s possible in digital and data-enabled assurance for traceability.

Food Agility partnered with industry to develop the Australian Agricultural Traceability Protocol (AATP), which will be used to create greater transparency of data shared across the supply chain to improve the accuracy, verifiability and confidence in environmental, social and governance reporting and accreditation.

A key objective of this work is to encourage and empower farmers as land stewards and data owners to securely capture, reuse and share data across the supply chain in an efficient cost-effective manner.

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Deputy Secretary Matt Koval said the protocol has been a success for red meat and it will be exciting to see continued progression throughout trials two and three — which will look at horticulture and grains.

“AgTrace Australia is working towards creating a cost-effective, scalable solution that demonstrates environmental sustainability from paddock to plate,” Koval said.

“The benefits of the Australian Agricultural Traceability Protocol trial are that it’s adaptable and scalable, meaning it is flexible for expansion.

“Permission-based data sharing means that users have data sovereignty and can determine for themselves how much data to share or not share. Thanks to the first trial, the potential for a cost-effective, transparent, readily accessible protocol that brings a reduced risk of greenwashing and can be integrated into existing systems has been tested.

“This is a proof of concept — testing the development of a technical standard, it’s an exciting outcome that shows what is possible, but more work needs to be done.”

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